I'm starting a new series of threads about games that seem to be lesser known, or at least not talked about much. Some titles I hear about frequently in many threads, while others I hear about next to never, if even whispered once. In any case, any classic deserves a little spotlight, and I can't imagine a game such as this deserving any less attention than some other classics, at least in the RTS genre.

Whether or not strategy games (or RTS games specifically) are your thing, check out the links and information below.

Post your own comments regarding the game, why you think it deserves a place on GOG's digital shelves, or even your own personal experiences playing the game.

As you will notice, Genewars is a Real-Time Strategy game that was released by Bullfrog Productions in 1996. By the video it seems to have very good sound effects for 1996, and I even see a bit of quirky humor as well, which is also good to see in an old game. The voices and other sound effects aren't all that bad, nor is the graphics for the year it was released and the type of game it is. Even if the gameplay doesn't seem to rival the later released Starcraft, I can see why some people would enjoy playing the game. Reviews for the game at the time seem to show it being "average"; not bad, but not stellar, but I can only imagine 17 years later it being a little more accepted, either by avid fans or by people who care little for ratings of a game that, at the time, was considered just like everything else. If we ignored the "average" games on GOG, a good portion of it's catalog wouldn't exist

Found a neat YouTube video as well that shows off the gameplay:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5UZh4fQR5I

Here it is on Moby Games:

http://www.mobygames.com/game/genewars

I even found a couple Genewars specific fansites:

http://genewars.lubie.org/

http://genewarsfan.manifo.com/

If it looks decent to you, or if you want to help support classic games of any kind on GOG, vote here:

http://www.gog.com/wishlist/games/genewars

It's for Windows and DOS, according to Wikipedia and Moby Games

I actually owned that game once upon a time. I can't remember whether I ever beat it though. I recall it being it dismissed as only so-so even back then, but I quite enjoyed it with its off-kilter RTS brand. It was fun breeding your own creations with which to harass the enemy camp. It really should only be a matter of time until GOG re-releases it.

It looks like a mix between Syndicate and Evolva, quite interesting really. It seems like a fitting game for this site too.

The Copy I have is for DOS,(or so it was ages ago when I tested it), but can't check any more as It's no longer working :(

Apparently the game is available at squaknet so I downloaded it to give it a try. First impression seems good, even technical side of things aside from the fact that music seems to be missing, there's not even a slider for it (or it looks like it's missing). I need to find a manual too.

Does anyone have any experience with DOS games like that?

The game does seem to run faster than it should (the save icon is blinking too quickly) and I found some comment about the game running twice as fast in dosbox, but it's not an issue so far.

I would love to have a GOG copy that would just work right of the box but it could take ages before it arrives here. :(

Voted for it a while ago

Unknown and Underrated gems are the games I love the most to discover on GOG

Opening the GOG page and seeing a good game that you are unfamiliar with is Amazing, I sometimes feel like I'm in 1995 again

Keep the thread updated about any new opinions you may get about the game.

I also found on one of the above linked fansites (lubie) patch links. Here's what the patches supposedly fix:

Official patch 1.1:

Official patch, that updates the game to version 1.1. Adds new multiplayer features and speed control.

Unofficial cd patch:

This patch will make the game work under DosBox. I've included C source code, if someone is interested with creating similar patch or want to know what exacly is patched:

To make the game more stable, you should also try changing dos4gw.exe with this (you must rename dos32a.exe to dos4gw.exe)
Download DOS32a 9.12

Looks like a good game, although I suspect people would bitch about a DOS release when there was a Windows version. :P

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCsCcvpGHOY

Looks good to me, I enjoy an RTS with a unique dynamic, as well as games with a genetic component. Kudos to you as well for taking the effort to publicise these lesser know games that could be useful additions to GOG.

I vaguely remember this game. A friend owned it years ago. The thing that stuck in my head most was the sound effects.

GeneWars 1.1 dosbox

I'm trying to follow this guide but I'm stuck at installing. The thread is old and likely dead but I did contact the creator so I'll see if he answers.

I'm following everything to the letter and when I'm at installing I'm supposed to type "install" and it says invalid command. Does anyone have an idea? I was thinking of making an installation with dosbox with this 1.1 patch including that unofficial patch to see if I can get it to work as good as it gets, maybe even tell GOG about it and see if they could contact Bullfrog to acquire the game since they're already here.

I tend to get this one mixed up with the sillier and not as good 'Gender Wars', think I've got both in the cupboard somewhere but never played either very much, would have been 'trying to get DOS games to run natively in Win98' era - that was always a pain in the arse!